Consider two groups of people, both of whom call themselves “conservatives.” One is the Republicans of Bush, Frist, DeLay, Enron, and the oil companies. They believe that unregulated business and low taxes are the cures for all ills. They also claim to believe in small government, but they really believe in big government that gives subsidies, handouts, and favors to their friends.

The second group are true believers in the tenets of conservatism written over the last 30 years. At the risk of mischaracterizing their beliefs, these people want to restore life as it was in the 50s. They long for the days when families were strong and communities were close-knit, when crime was low and the economy was such that two parents didn’t have to work.

I can respect the second group. I can’t respect the first. Fortunately, the second group can’t respect the first, either. And the Republicans I respect are generally in the second group. More than that, I agree with many of their core principles, if not their end policy goals. They and I part company on social issues, like choice and same-sex marriage - I don’t think abortions or gays have anything to do with the decline of America’s communities - and it’s easy to forget that life back then was completely different for the poor and minorities.

But we often do agree when it comes to urban policy. Paul Weyrich, chairman and CEO of the conservative Free Congress Foundation, is also a big proponent of mass transit and New Urbanism. In on The Next Conservatism - the direction he thinks conservatives should take - he writes about the importance of public spaces.

if we are to be citizens of a republic and not mere consumers in an administered state, we need to both have and want contact with our fellow-citizens. When life is privatized, lived largely or almost wholly behind walls, doors and security control points, society withers. We come only to care about ourselves and those who share our private space…

There is no question that American life is being privatized this way. If you go to Europe, you will see that people there spend much more of their time in the public space. The same used to be true in this country. Even the front porches of old houses, where families often spent their evenings before air conditioning and television, were part of the public space.

The destruction of the public space … happened in Rome, too, towards the end of the Empire. People stopped going to the forum and other public spaces, while private life became much more opulent. When that happens in any society, it makes it easier for those who want power to grab it, because people only care about their private lives.

For the Bush crowd, the privatization of the public space is great. It makes it easier for a small oligopoly to hold power and increases the dependence of the American people on consumerism to fill the void in their lives. Runaway copyright, too, is about privatizing the public spaces, in this case creative spaces, to the same detrimental effect. Whether in art or physical layout, it’s not good for America.